“There are many low-hanging pieces of fruit out there that Republicans
have said they agreed on previously. I’m not going to go into detail,
but one of them, of course, is deal with oil companies,” Reid said
Tuesday.

These swipes at the nearly
$4 billion in annual incentives awarded to the oil-and-gas industry are not
new.

President Obama and Senate Democrats have pushed several bills to
eliminate deductions offered to the oil-and-gas industry.
Some bills would have affected only the largest firms, though smaller,
independent drillers still would have taken a hit in others.

But Republicans, and some oil-state Democrats, have blocked those attempts.

They contend the industry's tax incentives
should not be singled out for repeal when many other businesses are given deductions and cost-recovery mechanisms.

Still, some Republicans and industry-friendly Democrats have said they
are open to putting oil-and-gas incentives on the table only as part
of a broader tax code overhaul.

“It can't be we'll let sequester kick in because we insist that tax
loopholes remain where they are for corporate jet owners, or subsidies
provided to the oil and gas companies that have done so exceedingly
well in recent years have to remain in place. That’s just — that’s not
I think a position that will earn a lot of support with the American
people,” Carney said.